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Lyrics:
How long till You hear us?
Till You come back, we ain’t giving up
How long till You heal us?
Till you come back, we ain’t giving up
Love rise up
Hope rise up
How long till You free us?
Till You come back, we ain’t giving up
How long till You mend us?
Till You come back, we ain’t giving up
Your strength will come like something lifted
Lift up your head (love is rising)
Lift up your head (hope is rising)
Lift up your head (be lifted)
Be lifted, be lifted
Lift up your head!
Written by David Crowder
©2005 worshiptogether.com Songs / sixsteps Music (ASCAP) Admin by EMI CMG Publishing
Behind the Song:
'This song begins with a sample from a record entitled “‘Let My People Go’ Black Spirituals / African Drums.” It is very old. It was recorded during an era where even sounding African American on an African American record was socially unacceptable. This record was an attempt at historic documentation of black spirituals but you listen and you hear these beautifully rich voices trying their utmost to sound sanitary and Caucasian so as not to offend. Early black spirituals and bluegrass music share much of the same content and context. Most of it is eschatological in orientation, a longing for Zion, getting out of here, on to the sweet by and by, etc.... I used to be troubled by this as much of my efforts in embodying the Christian faith center on bringing the kingdom of heaven into the here and now rather than postponing it, until these songs were viewed against the backdrop of historical elements from which they were birthed. There was no experience of present life known other than oppression and death and fear and toil. There was no shred of hope for anything other than deliverance and deliverance into the ever after was a more realistic, tangible hope than was deliverance to come in the here and now flesh and blood and sweat of living. There was nothing here other than pain and its balm was hope and this hoping in a sense actually did bring the kingdom of god into the here and now. There are sometimes moments in life so full of fury the only residence of redemption to be found is in the lifting of our heads, with our feet still in the dirt of the earth, to fix our gaze on the heavens.' - David Crowder
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